


Morning Rituals

by GuileandGall



Series: Guardians in the Darkness [12]
Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Bathroom Sex, Coitus Interruptus, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Morning Cuddles, Mornings, Showers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-21 16:54:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30024873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GuileandGall/pseuds/GuileandGall
Summary: Waking up together has its benefits, like water conservation and having someone to scrub your back in the shower. There are also drawbacks to being in command of the Normandy during the Reaper War
Relationships: Kaidan Alenko/Female Shepard, Kaidan Alenko/Shepard
Series: Guardians in the Darkness [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/62203
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	Morning Rituals

**Author's Note:**

> I realized that there was no way these two could manage to have everything go their way.

**-1-**

The shrill claxon of the alarm broke through the calm ever-present hum of the _Normandy_ ’s drive core. Kaidan reached above him with a free hand and patted about the headboard shelf to silence the sound as Shepard groaned and buried her face into the dip of his shoulder. His other arm tightened around her reflexively as she curled in closer to him as if he might somehow keep out the rest of the universe, the war, the coming mission, and just the expectation of an early morning.

Once the room returned to relative silence, he dipped his head and pressed a soft kiss along the edge of her hair. That earned him a quiet hum.

“It’s time to get up,” he whispered against her skin.

The revelation earned a disapproving grunt and she pressed her face against his chest as if she might be able to hide from the day there.

He couldn’t help but laugh and hug her tighter. Pressing a kiss into her hair, he whispered, “Come on. I’ll warm up the shower.”

As he shifted to get up, she finally raised her head, blinking sleepily at him. He dropped soft pecks on the tip of her nose and her lips. Nyx’s warm hand found his neck, keeping his mouth against hers for a short series of tender kisses.

“If you hurry, I’ll wash your back.” His eyes searched her gaze, which was still clouded with drowsiness and exhaustion despite the fact they had just awoken. He cherished this—waking up with her, stealing these little moments of normal in a raging sea of unprecedented stress. His hand swept over her cheek and his lips brushed hers once more.

“Get up,” he repeated in an gentle, yet encouraging tone.

She groaned again and feel back against the pillows. Kaidan just chuckled and pulled the blankets off her when he moved to the edge of the bed.

“Fine,” she grumbled, kicking the sheets the rest of the way off.

He didn’t blame her in the least. He, too, would prefer to be cuddled up warm and safe in her arms tucked into their bed. Turning away from that comfort, he shed his boxers as he crossed the room. In a playful taunt, he tossed them at her. “Slow poke.”

“You’re lucky you have a nice ass,” she called back at him as he slipped into the bathroom.

He just smirked, with a low chuckle in his throat as he crossed the room to make good his promise of warming up the water.

**-2-**

Nyx was used to sleeping like a cat, a few hours here a few hours there. But since reconciling with Kaidan, since they started sharing a bed, waking up at the drop of a dime was something she did not want to do. Her body, her soul wanted to luxuriate there, limbs entwined with his, his heartbeat slowing the pace of time and lulling her to sleep. It became harder to wake knowing that everything beyond the warmth of that embrace was cold, dark, and peppered with blood, smoke, and death.

She tossed his boxers on the floor, her t-shirt followed. As she stood, she pushed down her panties and kicked them into the pile of clothes accumulated from the night before when they fell into bed. The soles of her feet scuffed the smooth floors with every heavy step.

Reaching the threshold of the bathroom, the sight of his chiseled body glistening with prismatic droplets of water confronted her, as rivulets traced a stunning topography of muscle and scars. He tipped his head back to rinse the suds from his thick dark hair, and she was left staring at his Adam’s apple, which bobbed once with a quick swallow.

When his amber eyes blinked open, his smile curved his lips. _Stars_ , she loved the way he looked at her—like she was the center of his universe.

“Come here,” he said, holding his hand out to her. She took it and he yanked her into his embrace and the steaming stream of water; Nyx melted against him and allowed him to maneuver her more fully under the shower head.

The combination of stinging hot water and the warmth of him enveloping her did wonders for her exhausted soul. His lips were soft on hers as his hands threaded through her sleep-knotted hair. When he shifted away, she kept her arms around his waist, keeping him close as the shampoo bottle spurted rudely into his hand. His fingers pressed through her hair again—purposefully at first, then his attention turned to her scalp.

Her head fell back into the massaging motion, her eyes slipping closed as a moan bordering on salacious parted her lips.

“Better?” Kaidan asked, pressing a kiss to her chin. He trailed soft kisses along the length of her neck.

“Uh-huh,” she replied with the barest hint of coherence. Lips and hands continued their attention for what was probably far too long, but Nyx appreciated it nonetheless. Finally, she straightened a bit, cutting off his access to the column of her neck and forcing him to meet her gaze. “You have the most amazing hands,” she said with a relaxed laugh.

Kaidan gave her the most shit-eating grin. “I know,” he assured her, pecking the tip of her nose. “Rinse.”

As his embrace loosened, she thrust her bottom lip at him in a pout. He just chuckled and grabbed the washcloth off the bar and filled it with a bright citrus-scented soap that chased away the remaining fog in her brain. She might still be sore and tired, but she felt awake … well, more awake than when the alarm sounded.

The nap of the towel swept down her sternum and circled her breasts. Even if the movement of his hands had been entirely clinical, Nyx would have still felt that jolt of desire shoot through her body at Kaidan’s touch. Kaidan’s bare hand chased the cleansing cloth, thumbing her nipples and squeezing her breasts. It sent shocks through her body.

Hair rinsed she glared up at him. “Don’t start what you can’t finish,” she warned.

 _Damn that chuckle_ , she thought when he met her blue eyes with a heated look that went straight to her core.

“Oh, I’ll start it. And finish it,” he growled against her lips. “Eventually.”

That single word parted her lips with a needy whimper. She knew damn well that he was more patient than she was. He could tease her all day long, leave her begging for hours before his need reached that point of no return.

“Kaidan.” It was a plea.

He brushed a chaste kiss against her lips, pulling away when she tried to deepen it. “Turn around,” he ordered.

Begrudgingly, she replied. He swept her hair over her shoulder and set to scrubbing her back, starting at her shoulders. His attention was thorough. Nyx, opting for naughty rather than nice, pressed her hips against him. Feeling his cock thicken against her ass did little to calm her libido. But Kaidan was having none of it. He stepped back and greedily swept the soapy washcloth over her rear end, adding firm squeezes with his free hand, and a sudsy swat before he crouched to wash her legs.

Nyx turned, exposing her back to the water flow. She set one of her feet on Kaidan’s knee, which parted her legs invitingly. His gaze when right to the blazing core of her that she wanted him to touch. A heat seemed to roil deep inside her as he stared between her legs, even though his hands avoided her apex with deft skill.

She gasped when he shifted. Kaidan pressed a soft kiss upon her mound, then stood, drawing his body along the length of hers. Meanwhile, his hand dragged that damnable cloth up her leg, and swept it between them with clinical precision before scrubbing across her hips and her belly. 

“Done,” he declared, offering her the towel.

She took it and stared at him like the evil torturer he was in that moment. “You sure?” she purred. Nyx let her fingers trail down the center of his chest, chasing the rivers of water that raced over his flesh along trails determined by gravity and surface dynamics. Dragging the tip of her nail down the length of his cock, she stared at him, watched the twitch in his smile that mirrored the one which flexed beneath her touch.

“Did I miss a spot?” he taunted.

“Yeah, I think you did.”

Kaidan loomed over her as she pressed her palm upward against him. He pulled back enough for his gaze to run a greedy course over her skin. “Where?” His enticing gaze met hers again. “I was incredibly thorough. I’m pretty sure I got _every_ inch,” he argued, his voice almost devoid of the excitement she knew coursed through him.

His breath caught when her hand wrapped around his cock and gave it a firm pump from base to tip and back.

“Didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s not nice to tease?”

“Who said I was teasing?”

This time when her hand moved, his hips chased the motion. When she stretched up on her toes, his mouth crashed against hers. The sweet pecks gave way to a heady kiss that stole her breath and made her head spin. Shepard dropped the towel and her arms circled his shoulders.

When the water stopped, Kaidan’s hands grasped the backs of her thighs. With a little hop, her arms tightened around his neck, and when he lifted her, her legs wrapped around his waist. She could feel his cock against her, hot and hard. Flexing her legs, Nyx rubbed herself against him.

She landed roughly on the counter. Kaidan broke the kiss when the tension in her legs loosened. He dropped quickly, his hands pushing at her legs and spreading her labia at the same time. The greedy lick he gave her set her head spinning. When his tongue pushed into her, she gasped and pushed her hand into his hair. She writhed against his tongue, until he stood once more. There was little pretense. His hand slipped between them, and as Kaidan leaned over her to kiss her once more, he pressed into her. They moaned into one another’s mouths as he hilted himself inside her. Her fingers scratched at the stubble of his beard. He glided in an out of her with the same greediness she felt in his kiss, the same hunger she touched him with.

His hand caught her breast in a tight grip that poised her nipple for his attention. While their kiss broke, his mouth only momentary parted from her skin before wrapping around that rosy flesh made ready for him.

“Fuck,” she crooned, her head falling back against the mirror as he suckled at her tight nipple.

He flicked his eyes back up at her as he opened his mouth and dragged his tongue over her once more. Nyx grinned at him, pushing her hand through his hair. They moved in tandem; wrapped up in one another—teasing, touching, giving, and taking.

“Shepard. pardon the interruption,” EDI’s voice chimed through the room.

Everything stilled. Shepard froze like she’d been doused in freezing water that solidified the instant it touched her skin

“You left a standing order to be notified when we were within range of the Arrae. Scans suggest there are Cerberus troops already on the ground engaging unknown forces.”

Nyx’s gaze hadn’t left Kaidan, who had stilled within her, though he had straightened and pressed his hands to the counter beneath her. He knew what was coming next as well as she did.

“Have Garrus suit up and meet me in the cargo bay,” she said in a voice that barely gave away the fact that she had been in the early throes of passion. “Sorry,” she mouthed to Kaidan.

“Right away, Shepard,” EDI replied. And with an additional electronic chime, Nyx knew they were alone again.

“Don’t apologize,” Kaidan told her, leaning over her.

She draped her arms around his neck and brushed the tip of his nose with her own. “I just …”

“It’s not the first time, Nyx.”

“I know,” she replied, her voice sharpening a little. “I still hate it though.”

“Well, then. Kick those Cerberus bastards in the teeth and get your gorgeous ass back here so I can fuck you into proper breathlessness.”

“Yes, sir,” she replied with a breathless chuckle. She pulled him close for one last lingering kiss before shifting off the counter with a whimper as he slid out of her. “Stars, I want you,” she muttered against his chest, planting one last quick kiss near his shoulder.

“Believe me, I’d rather you stayed right here on this counter, too,” he said, following her out and into the loft. “But I’m not going anywhere.”

Nyx opened her closet and threw a soft smile at him over her shoulder. “I know. Me either.” She pulled on a pair of panties, and started dressing. “You should get dressed. I know how a good fight gets your blood up.”

Kaidan’s laughter rumbled along her nerves in the most delightful way. “Oh, I see. You want me to embarrass poor Garrus and Cortez when I bend you over the armory in the back of the shuttle after,” he chided as he slid past her, brushing his cock against her ass in the process. He dropped a tender kiss on her shoulder, giving her skin a sharp nibble after.

Her laughter faded with a hiss at the bite. “Yeah, right,” she scoffed, zipping up her undersuit and reaching for her next layer.

She hated when duty interfered with them, but this is who they were, who they had always been. Glancing over at him as he buckled one of his greaves in place, the commander could still remember those conversations from the old _Normandy_ , the ones about them both being lifers, about them both being soldiers first. That this thing between them wouldn’t, couldn’t outstrip their careers.

Reaching for her helmet, Kaidan’s hand grasped hers. When she looked up at him, he cupped her cheek. “See you on the other side,” he whispered against her lips, kissing her once more; it was deep and full of promise. The kind of kiss that made every fiber in her body want to achieve that tiny little goal of seeing him again.

“Love you,” she said, touching his neck and pressing a tender kiss to his mouth. “And hurry along before Vakarian gets antsy.”

Kaidan chuckled, and it brightened when she smacked him on the ass. “Tell him to cool his jets,” he called after her.

He was by her side again before the lift reached the top deck of the ship. Kaidan shot her a crooked grin. Once they entered the elevator, she felt him shift closer. She could hear him lick his lips and then his breath was warm against the shell of her ear. “Fuck, Nyx, I can still taste you.”

Kaidan licked his lips once more and gave her a wink as he hummed quietly in content approval as he savored the remnants of her. She grabbed him by the chestplate and planted a rough kiss on his mouth. She hated when he was right.

“Damn you,” she gasped, letting go of him when the lift chimed. Then the door opened to a flurry of activity in the belly of the ship.


End file.
